


Learning to Cope

by EchoingHowls



Category: Dream SMP - Fandom, Hermitcraft RPF
Genre: Everyone wants to help the terrified teenager, Hermit!Tommy AU, I won’t say it but, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Processing Trauma, Slightly Out Of Character, Trauma, Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms, but not really, mention of manipulation
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-21
Updated: 2021-02-20
Packaged: 2021-03-12 22:48:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 10
Words: 18,106
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28893159
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EchoingHowls/pseuds/EchoingHowls
Summary: Tommy has just watched L’Manburg explode. His home is gone and he doesn’t have much left.After he is struck by some stray lightning, he is transported to a separate server with large builds and people armed to the teeth with weapons and money.At least the admin is trying to get him back home, so he can get back to Tubbo soon...Right?(Hermit!Tommy)
Comments: 141
Kudos: 631





	1. Chapter 1- Lightning

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [The Friends We Made Along the Way](https://archiveofourown.org/works/28235151) by [redcursive](https://archiveofourown.org/users/redcursive/pseuds/redcursive). 



> Hello!  
> I know this is completely different from what I usually write (in terms of the fandom) but I fell in love with this idea and needed to show y’all what I’ve been writing instead of Tattered Wings. 
> 
> NOTE:  
> This is set right after L’Manburg is blown up and the Mycelium War has ended.  
> L’Manburg is a crater and the shopping district has been restored to grass.
> 
> Enjoy!

Smoke rose into the night sky.  
Stars were blotted out by ash as fire crackled below.  
Far below.  
A pit that led all the way to bedrock sat heavy and ugly in the landscape.  
Rubble crumbled from where it loosely stood next to the hole.  
The crackle as it fell into the crater was one of the few audible sounds from the grid in the sky.  
Dark streaks scratched into the usual peaceful inky blue.  
Three people sat on the thin obsidian path, staring down into what had once been a country.  
L’Manburg.  
“I had just been unexiled...”  
One of them said quietly, his white and red shirt singed and torn from battle.  
The boy that was sat beside him nodded quietly, his suit still a bit too big, but not as bad as when he had first put it on.  
The third figure hovered nearby, clutching a small azure object as he stared at the pit.  
“Tommy...”  
The ghost cooed, not moving his eyes from the hole in the terrain.  
“Yes, Wilbur?”  
The singed boy mumbled.  
“I think-“

The ghost was cut off by a deafening boom.  
Thunder roared and ricocheted through Tommy’s skull as a blinding light encompassed him.  
A startling pain shot through his body but left just as quick.

He was winded and quickly tried to catch his breath as his eyes grew used to the dim moonlight again.  
He started laughing.  
What are the chances of getting stuck by lightning?  
“And here I thought the odds were on my side!”  
He chuckled, rubbing his eyes as he looked around.

When he took in the surroundings, he paused.  
He was not in L’Manburg. Or- what remained of it anyway.  
In fact, he was sitting on a pathway.  
A path that lead to a giant building of sandstone and brick in front of him.  
Where was he?  
He turned to look behind him and only saw more path, and more buildings.  
There was a wooden and glass structure that seemed to be floating in a pond, and some other buildings further in the distance.

He stood up.  
Where was Tubbo?  
Ghostbur?  
“Tubbo?”  
He called out looking around.  
His voice echoed unnervingly, but no one responded.  
“Tubbo? Wilbur?”  
Still silence.  
Tommy swallowed.  
Was he still in the Dream SMP?

Tommy took a deep breath and composed himself. If he didn’t know where he was, the first thing he should do was figure it out.

So, he set out and began exploring wherever he was.  
He went to the wooden and glass building first, since it was the closest.  
There wasn’t much inside but several dozen chests, all with random things that seemed to be for sale if the diamond price tag was anything to go by.

It was just a bunch of junk until he found one filled with tnt.  
He froze when he opened the box.  
There was enough there to blow up L’Manburg all the way to bedrock twice over.  
He shakily closed the chest and took a step back. He shook himself and kept digging through chests, swallowing the nerves that kept crawling up.  
Who needed this much tnt?  
And why were they _selling_ it?

The last chest he opened was full of rockets.  
He shut it so fast he almost crushed his fingers.

He brushed himself off and started heading for the door, forcing himself not to think about how this looked like somewhere Technoblade would shop.  
There was a second floor, but he couldn’t find a way to get up to it and left the building.  
When he stepped out and looked down the path, the next shop was in the shape of a bundle of dynamite.  
He knew what it was selling but still tentatively opened a few chests.  
Was this where Dream was getting all his tnt?

Tommy slowly backed out of the shop, checking and double checking that there was no trap that would go off if he stepped wrong.

_I need to tell Tubbo_.  
Tommy fished out his communicator to message the president, but the screen wouldn’t turn on.  
It was cracked and smoldered a bit, the smell of burnt electronics making Tommy gag.

Remembering the lightning bolt, he looked down at his clothes, surprised to see them in perfect shape.  
He looked like he did the first day he joined the Dream SMP.

He pocketed the device, gritting his teeth as he looked around.  
“Of course it’s the only thing affected by that fuckin’ lightning.”

Tommy swallowed his nerves that threatened to boil over and went to follow the path further into town when he heard a rocket.

A hissing squeal that made his heart stop and blood freeze.  
He bolted for cover, picking the large raft instead of the building full of bombs.  
He looked around for the source of the rocket, but all the roads were empty.  
Tommy wished the sound of wood creaking as the shop sat in the water would shut up so he could listen to footsteps.  
He didn’t want to acknowledge how bad his fingers were shaking as he gripped the wood beams of the building.  
He didn’t want to admit defeat with an empty inventory and only one canon life left.  
He waited for Techno to appear behind a building, pointing the same crossbow full of rockets at him just like he did Tubbo.

“Um... hello?”  
Tommy jumped out of his skin, and he was sure he had a heart attack by the way his heart was beating frantically and inconsistently.  
He whipped around to see someone he didn’t recognize with a voice that wasn’t Techno’s.

_But he has rockets._  
Tommy reminded himself as he stared at the other person, straightening himself to look as confident as he could while forcing out all of the terror that trembled his bones.

“Who the fuck are you?”  
Tommy spat, taking a step away from the stranger.  
He was wearing netherite armor for everything but a chestplate.  
_Hes not ready to fight... is he? Who fights without a chestplate?_

“Um... I’m Etho. I haven’t seen you here before...”  
Etho looked uncomfortable, if the fingers kneading through his white hair was anything to go by. He also couldn’t maintain eye-contact with Tommy for very long.

Hm...  
Maybe he could use this.  
“Well _Etho_ ,”  
He said the name weird on purpose and with venom.  
“Do you know where we are?”

Etho blinked at the question before mumbling,  
“Uh, the Hermitcraft server?”  
“Hermitcraft? What, are you all ‘ermits on here? You all poor?”  
Tommy sneered at Etho, and the older scratched the back of his neck.  
“Not really? I know Keralis has a diamond office... Cub has a room with netherite walls...”

_Holy shit_. For a place called Hermitcraft the people here were _stacked_.

Tommy swallowed.  
He had no chance of taking on Dream if they were on his side.  
Etho shuffled uncomfortably before taking a step away from Tommy.  
“Um, I’m just going to keep shopping. I’ll see you around.”

Etho turned and hurried off before Tommy could say another word.  
Tommy saw him pull out some rockets and then with the same hissy scream, he took off into the sky with-  
_wings?_  
Tommy blinked at the wings that came from Etho’s shoulders as he disappeared into the night.  
No wonder he wasn’t wearing a cheastplate, he can _fly_.

Tommy flinched as he heard another rocket come from wherever Etho had gone.

Wait.  
What if Etho was going to tell Techno where he was?  
What if _this_ is were Dream was going to disappear for a bit?

Tommy’s breaths were growing rapid.  
He needed to get out of here.  
He needed to get as far away as possible so he wouldn’t lose his _last canon life_.  
Tommy took off down the path.  
He wouldn’t be a ghost.  
Not now.  
Not yet.

Tommy followed the path toward a monstrous building with a giant plant poking out of it, and steered away from it.  
He needed wood.  
As he looked around the surrounding buildings, he saw a large blimp with the sign “LOGZ” on it.  
It was a bit of a detour into the path but he managed to make it without any sign of Etho or Techno.  
He threw open a chest and stared at the piles upon piles of oak logs. He smiled and grabbed a couple stacks. He ignored the price tag. He didn’t have anything on him anyway.

He threw together a crafting table (making too many planks in the process) and crafted a boat as quickly as possible.  
He hopped in, avoiding the bit of orange rock that stretched out in front of him.  
He turned and went as far as he could through the water, not stopping until he reached shore.

He huffed, his arms tired and sore from rowing as violently as he did. He broke the boat and brought it with him in case he encountered another ocean.  
As he took his first steps in the plains biome, he looked back at the town that now sat on the horizon.  
He couldn’t see anyone immediately on their way to find and kill him, so at least he was ahead of them.

As he began hiking through the plains, the sun began to slowly rise behind him.


	2. Chapter 2- Thief

Sweat dripped down Tommy’s back as he hiked through the thick foliage.  
The plains were behind him, and what stood before him now was a near impenetrable jungle.  
He struggled for hours, trudging through the bushes and vines, killing what animals he found and eating the meat raw.  
He stomach gurgled in protest, but he kept pushing.  
He wanted to get out of the jungle to find some sort of shelter for the night, and there was no way it went on forever, right?

As he wiped some sweat off his brow, he pushed through a wall of leaves and nearly fell into a lake.  
He let out a yelp, looking up from the clearing and gasping.  
A gigantic tree stretched up into the sky, larger than anything Tommy thought possible.

“That might give me some cover for a bit,”  
He scoffed, walking along the edge of the ponds until he reached the tree.

He walked along the edges of the tree to try and find a space under its roots that he might be able to rest, but there wasn’t anything that looked too great.  
He did see a spot about halfway up the tree covered with honey, but he didn’t see any way to get up that high.

Hm.  
Well...  
Chances are that if there is light up there...  
Tommy smiled as he broke a log and revealed the base inside the tree.  
“This is cool!”  
He smiled, looking around the house in awe,  
“I might have to steal it for myself!”  
As he said that, he turned to see a large pit in the middle of the room.  
When he peeked over the edge, his eyes lit up.  
It was a large pile of _diamonds_.  
Tommy checked his inventory for a water bucket, then immediately remembered he didn’t have one and looked around for some resources.

He climbed up a staircase that wrapped around the inside of the tree, then giggled like a maniac.  
There were more diamonds, iron and even gold that was just _sitting_ on display.  
He made another crafting table (he left the other one back in that hermitcraft town) and rushed to the several barrels and chests that were meticulously organized to grab some stone for a pickaxe.  
He then dashed to the piles and grabbed everything he could (except gold. That stuff is useless).  
He broke all the diamond blocks into diamonds themselves, but as he was about to craft it into armor, he saw someone appear in his peripheral vision.  
He froze and watched as the guy yawned and stretched from where Tommy could assume was his bedroom, looking around his house drowsily.

The teen slowly gathered the things he had stolen and began to creep into the cubby where the piles of iron had been, holding his breath as he listened for the guy downstairs.

The builder hummed as he walked around, and Tommy heard him open a few chests, but then it went quiet.  
He still waited for several minutes, and when he still didn’t hear anything, he slunk back down as quiet as he could.  
He didn’t see the guy anywhere, so he decided to make a run for it while he could.  
As he was breaking a new hole in the base of the tree, (he forgot where the original one was) there was a shout behind him.  
“Hey! Grian is that you?”  
Tommy looked back to see the guy standing in front of a nether portal, where he was jogging to catch up to the teen.  
“Shit-“  
He hissed breaking the last block and booking it out of the tree as fast as he could.  
“Wha? Grian!”  
Tommy ran as fast as he could, wishing they weren’t in the middle of the FUCKING JUNGLE so that he could escape faster.

He risked a look behind him and saw the builder standing in the hole he carved out staring at him as he ran away.  
Tommy laughed as he ran,  
“You’ll never catch me! I got away!”  
After pushing through a wall of bamboo, he heard it.  
The hiss of a rocket.

The blood drained from his face as he whipped around to see the same guy speeding toward him.  
_He also has wings? Where the fuck am I?_  
Tommy began trying to run, but tripped in his scramble.  
“Fuck!”  
He yelped, sliding into a bush and getting caught in the branches. He was only down three hearts, but that still meant he wasn’t at full, and his hunger was down too much to regen.

When the builder landed in front of him, Tommy froze.  
“Are you okay?”  
He asked, offering a hand to pull the teen to his feet. Tommy glanced up at him, taking in his cyborg eye and disheveled hair.  
The teen didn’t take the hand.  
“Oh wait, you’re not Grian,”  
The guy scoffed,  
“I’m sorry about that! You two kinda look alike. I’m Iskall! What’s your name?”  
Tommy stared at Iskall, then slowly tried to stand up. His clothes were still caught on branches though, and when he tried to shake himself lose, it only got worse.  
“Shit-“  
Tommy growled, trying to free himself.  
“Here, let me help,”  
Iskall moved to help pull the teen free but he lashed out.  
“I don’t need your pity! I can do it just fine.”  
Iskall seemed a bit taken aback, but Tommy was able to free himself from the bush, albeit with a couple tears in his shirt.

“What did you say your name was?”  
Iskall asked again, and Tommy grit his teeth.  
Should he tell anyone who he was?  
Wouldn’t Dream and Techno already tell them to be on the lookout for him?  
The teen hesitated before saying,  
“I’m... Tubbo.”  
Iskall smiled, and it made Tommy more nervous.  
“Okay! Nice to meet you Tubbo! Are you new here?”

“Uh... yeah. Brand new.”  
“Well, I can lend you a couple things if you want some, need anything?”  
_Its a trap. He knows I took stuff._  
“Uh, no. I’m fine. Just looking around.”  
Iskall nodded before saying,  
“Okay! Message me if you need anything, I’ll be here. Oh! And do you have the woods from my tree?”  
“Oh uh...”  
Tommy tossed a stack of logs to Iskall, taking a couple steps back.  
“Here you go.”  
“Great! Thank you!”

Iskall pulled some rockets out and before Tommy could plug his ears, they were screaming again and the builder was gone.  
He swallowed as he watched Iskall fly away, firing more rockets to gain speed.  
He plugged his ears until he was sure they stopped, then he set off back into the jungle.  
He needed to get away from Iskall too.  
“This is fucked up,”  
He grumbled, rubbing his head as he trekked,  
“All these people probably work for Dream and I get stuck in the middle of them?”

He sighed, continuing to fight the foliage as he made his way through the jungle.


	3. Chapter 3- GoodTimesWithScar

The next sign of human life he found was a village.  
Just a full blown village with houses and trees and crystals and-  
 _Are those shulkers?_

Tommy ran toward the piles of shulkers and opened them to see just hundreds of random blocks.  
He cackled like a maniac as he dumped out the stacks of sand and dirt before shoving all of the ores he had stolen inside and taking it with him.  
“Oh right, I need to make armor,”  
He said to himself as he made yet another crafting table (he left the other at the tree).  
“Can I help you?”

Tommy glanced behind him to see another stranger standing near the fountain wearing a neatly ironed suit and a sash that said “Mayor”.  
Oh fuck.

“Um, n-no I think I’m good Mr. Mayor.”  
“Really? Because you are dumping out my shulkers, and while I know I have a bad habit of making chest monsters, I don’t think this is the way to help me.”

The mayor walked closer, and Tommy could see scars that littered his face. Longs ones that trailed over his eyebrow and his lips.  
It reminded Tommy of Technoblade.  
He was going to die.

“Um- I-I can put them back if you would like. Just- please don’t kill me.”  
The mayor’s frown turned into confusion. He stared at Tommy for a moment before stating calmly,  
“I don’t think we’ve met. I’m Scar, the mayor of Hermitcraft. Have you been on this server before?”

Tommy shook his head,  
“N-no Mr. Scar. Can I call you big S?”  
Scar blinked at the question before shrugging.  
“I guess? No one else does but-“  
“Big S! Big Mayor! How are you?”  
Scar seemed really confused now.  
“Um, fine? Did you say your name?”  
“Call me Tubbo Mr. Big Mayor! Big S! I was just um- I was just looking around! Isn't this area beautiful!”

Scar looked around at the village and then nodded with a small smile.  
“I’m glad you think so! I built this place you know. Well, me and Jellie.”  
“What? Really? This looks so good I might just live here myself!”  
“Oh, I mean if you want to I guess I could talk to Jellie about it-“  
“Oh no no no! I couldn’t ask you to do that for me, Big S. That would seem like favoritism and mayors can’t have favorites. We all know that.”

Scar was quiet for a moment before he said,  
“I’m sure people would understand-“  
“Nope! Nope nope nope absolutely not! I’ll be fine on my own. I’m a big man! Call me Big T!”  
Confusion was crawling back onto Scar’s features so Tommy began to walk away.  
“Well, it was nice seeing you Big S. I’ll be sure to give you five stars on Yelp. Best Mayor ever!”

And with that, he pushed back into the undergrowth and ducked behind a building.  
He honestly didn’t want to walk any further in the jungle, and there were so many houses that he could live in that he planned on spending the night there anyway.  
He just needed Scar to leave and-  
A rocket fired and the teen plugged his ears, watching as the mayor took off with his rockets and wings.  
Tommy swallowed thickly.  
He really hoped he never saw Techno with a pair of wings and rockets himself.

He waited a few minutes to make sure Scar was really gone, then ducked into the house he had hidden behind.  
It was small and cozy, and empty of anything useful.  
There was a bed though, and he flopped heavily onto it. It felt so soft, and he was sure he was going to be sore from all the climbing and rowing he’d done that day.  
But at least he wasn’t going to be sleeping in the jungle tonight, fighting spiders and creepers and trying not to die.

He sighed and built another crafting table (might as well) and pulled out his shulker box of items.  
His smile was huge as he pulled out the diamonds and laid them out on the crafting table.  
He made himself some armor and some diamond tools, then pulled out the iron and made himself a shield and a bucket.

He’d fill up the bucket next chance he got, and then he could mlg water if he ever needed to.  
Tommy sighed as he settled back into bed.  
He glanced out the window as the sunset began to burn the sky.  
He had everything he needed.  
Now, he just needed to find Tubbo and bring L’Manburg back here so they could burn it to the ground.  
Then, maybe Dream won’t be so powerful.

===

“Is this who you saw?”  
“Yeah, that’s him.”  
Tommy heard the voices murmuring nearby, but it took him a moment to remember he wasn’t in L’Manburg anymore.  
He bolted upright, turning to see several people in the small room with him.  
Scar, Iskall, Etho, and some other guy he hadn’t seen yet.  
He was wearing a suit of armor, but different to the diamond or iron he usually saw.  
It was green and bulky and only his eyes peeked out from the visor.  
He made nerves crawl up Tommy’s spine.

“Good morning, Tubbo!”  
Scar crowed happily, waving at the teen.  
“Tommy. Your name is Tommyinnt, right?”  
The guy in the green armor had been typing away on his communicator, but he glanced at the teen to get an answer.

Tommy couldn’t speak.  
Terror was running through his veins.  
“Hello? Are you Tommy?”  
The stranger asked again, waving a hand in front of his face.  
He only managed to swallow and nod a response.

“Great. Nice to meet you Tommy, I’m Xisuma. I’m the admin of this server. Do you know how you got on without me whitelisting you?”

“W-what?”  
Tommy stuttered, hiding his shaking hands in his fists.  
“I didn’t whitelist you, and yet here you are on the server. How did you get on?”

The teen swallowed, glancing between Scar and Xisuma.  
This was it.  
He was dead anyway, might as well tell the truth.

“I-I was on the Dream SMP, above L’Manburg, when I got struck by lightning, and then I woke up in a big town? With stores? I think Etho said it was Hermitcraft, but I don’t know where I am now...”  
The four were quiet before Xisuma said slowly,  
“You’re still in Hermitcraft, this whole place is Hermitcraft.”  
“Oh.”  
Tommy blinked before asking,  
“You guys don’t have separate countries or anything?”

There was another long beat of silence before Xisuma said,  
“No?”

Tommy swallowed.  
Great.  
So he just made enemies with _everyone_ , plus all the people he hasn’t met yet, because that town was **full** of buildings that took more than four people to build.

“Tommy?”  
“Hm?”  
“Did you hear me?”

Oh, had he been in his head?  
Tommy shook his head and Xisuma asked again,  
“How long have you been on?”  
“Um, I woke up yesterday night?”  
“So you saw Etho right after you woke up?”  
Tommy nodded again.  
“Okay! Great. If you want to stay here, then I can try and figure out how to get you to your original server. That sound good?”

Tommy hesitated, then nodded.  
Did that mean they weren’t going to kill him?

“By the way, where did you get all this stuff?”  
Xisuma questioned as he poked around at the armor and shulker box that laid askew in the room.  
“Found it.”  
Tommy said immediately, wincing as he lied.  
Iskall looked down at the stuff and chuckled,  
“Is this my stuff? Is that where they went?”  
Tommy bit his lip and said just as quick,  
“No.”

Etho had already left, but the other three looked between each other before back at Tommy.  
“Are you sure?”  
Tommy winced and said,  
“I maaaaaay have taken some things.”

Iskall shook his head and chuckled as he gathered his things back.  
“You can have the armor, but I’ll take this back.”  
“Yeah...”  
Tommy sighed, watching as Iskall left.  
He was glad he couldn’t hear the rockets from inside.

Xisuma sighed, tapping away on his communicator before turning it off.  
“Alright, well I’ll try to fix this. I’ll let you know when I get this figured out, but in the meantime, don’t cause too many problems.”  
With that Xisuma left as well, leaving Tommy with Scar.  
The mayor stared at the teen through squinted eyes, then said,  
“Do you want me to give you a tour? We can start at the shopping district and then go to people’s bases.”

Tommy stared at Scar.  
He didn’t want to decline, because he didn’t want to piss him off, but would he have to fly?  
With rockets?  
He swallowed.

“Um, sure. That would be nice but... can we go on foot?”  
Scar chuckled, but then stopped when he realized Tommy was serious.  
“Oh. Are you sure? I can let you borrow an elytra.”  
“Are elytra the wings?”  
Scar nodded.  
“And do I have to use the rockets to fly?”

Scar tilted his head, but nodded again.  
The teen sighed, pulling his knees close so he could rest his chin on them.  
“Then yeah. Enderpearls please.”  
Scar smiled, then nodded,  
“Alright, I’ll be right back with some pearls.”  
Tommy nodded, then watched as he left.

He saw the mayor take off into the sky and sighed.  
He kicked the sheets off his feet and put his things into his inventory.  
He didn’t realize Scar had left the shulker, even though he knew the mayor had seen him take it.  
He frowned as he packed it away.  
Scar will want something as payment.  
He pulled his armor on and held his sword tightly.  
He needed to stay on Scar’s good side for as long as he was here.  
He only had one canon life, right?  
Or- because he was on a different server, he’d have more?  
How many canon lives do they have?  
What if they all only have one?  
What if he becomes a ghost here and goes back to L’Manburg and is still a ghost?  
What would happen to Tubbo?  
What if Wilbur is brought back and Tommy is the only ghost?  
What if-

“Tommy? Are you okay?”  
The teen blinked from his thoughts to see the mayor standing in the room again.  
Concern was obvious in his face, and it made Tommy feel even more uncomfortable.  
 _Why is he worried?_  
“Yeah, I’m fine.”  
Tommy huffed, trying to ignore his racing heart and heaving breaths.

Scar didn't look like he believed Tommy, but he didn’t push it.  
“Okay, well I got the ender pearls. Ready to go?”  
The teen nodded, then they both headed outside.

They enderpearled to the edge of the land, Scar always ending up ahead of Tommy and waiting for the teen to catch up before they ended up by the ocean.

Scar pulled out two boats, but Tommy placed his from before and used it instead of the one the mayor brought.  
Scar shrugged, then began to lead the way back to the shopping district.  
The teen had followed close behind, but quickly fell back.  
He had done this before.  
He had followed someone on a boat to what became _literal hell_...  
Was he about to do it again?  
Were they going to take everything he’s earned so far?  
Yeah he stole all of it, but he had _earned_ it. It wasn’t given to him out of _pity_.

Tommy looked up as Scar kept rowing, the space between them growing larger and larger.  
He swallowed.  
Scar looked about as dangerous as Dream, so he really should keep following the mayor.  
But he didn’t want to go through that again.  
Not that _hell_.  
Sure, that place looked nice, but there was probably some hellscape beneath it full of monsters ready to kill him.  
He watched Scar for a moment longer then turned his boat around.  
He could get out of this.  
He wouldn’t die.  
Not yet.  
He could run and hide and as long as no one saw him, he could get away with it.

When he reached the shore he looked back at the shopping district, where he saw Scar get out of his boat and pause.  
He swallowed when he saw Scar look back up at him, then bolted.

He had stolen a shulker, made Scar walk on foot instead of flying, and lied and left him.  
He was a dead man walking.

He ran as fast as he could back into the forest he had just left, and with his armor at least he was moving a bit faster, his skin and clothes not getting caught on branches and thorns.

He didn’t stop running until he was out of hunger.  
Then he walked and walked and walked and walked until he collapsed on the edge of a clearing.  
When he looked up, he saw a giant mansion.  
More people.  
 _More danger._  
Tommy grimaced and looked around at the surrounding area.  
There was another smaller building nearby, and when he opened the door, cobwebs were draped through the air.  
He smiled.  
Abandoned.  
 _Perfect_.

Tommy closed the door, taking in the quiet surroundings and rummaging through the miscellaneous chests.  
There wasn’t much, and it was pretty much all junk, but he did find a rabbit’s foot!  
“Maybe I can sell this back in L’Manburg,”  
He mumbled to himself, smiling as he looked at it and tucked it into his inventory.

He found a bed and settled down, sighing to try and calm the nerves that were racing through his veins.  
He was going to be okay.  
He’d get back to L’Manburg, see Tubbo, and they could fix their friendship and everything would go back to normal.  
“I’m not in exile anymore,”  
He thought aloud, staring at the dusty ceiling,  
“Everything can go back to normal.”


	4. Chapter 4- The Smarter Decision

When Tommy awoke the next morning he was starving.  
Also sweating profusely as it was humid as shit, but mostly he was hungry.

Hunger was the one thing he wasn’t used to.  
In his house he had carrots, in Pogtopia they had Techno’s potatoes, in Logsted he had Mushroom Henry’s stew, and with Techno he had golden apples.

But out here, where he was _completely_ alone, he was on the verge of starving.  
He had no Wilbur or Techno or Dream.  
No one could come visit him.  
Unless he turned himself in?  
Then at least he would see Techno or Dream.  
Tommy shook his head.  
He could do this.  
He just needed some food! That was easy.  
He couldn’t have a farm, that would be too obvious.  
He could just kill every animal he finds, but then he would need to mine some coal to cook it and he needed food sooner rather than later.

Tommy rustled through what was in the abandoned house and managed to find some raw potatoes, but most had rotted to poisonous, so he was only able to eat three.  
At least he could run again.

When he didn’t find anything else, he sat and stared out the window.  
The heat of the jungle was heavy and uncomfortable in the small house, but at least it looked nice outside the window.

He glanced at the giant mansion that was just up the hill, then paused as he saw a figure take off from the steps and into the thick of the jungle.  
They were probably looking for him.  
Tommy turned his eyes to the mansion and bit his lip.  
There was probably food inside.  
And he needed some food if he was going to hole up for a while.  
Tommy watched the tree line to see if the owner of the mansion was coming back, but after several long minutes of silence (sans the chirping and tweeting of parrots) he ventured outside.

He knew if Wilbur were here, his older brother would be telling him off.  
“ _You go into two places and get caught but still don’t learn that you shouldn't steal?_ ”  
Tubbo would probably have helped him at least.

Tommy frowned.  
He didn’t want to think about his family anymore.

As he reached the base of the mansion, he was welcomed to a long hallway and a room full of villagers.  
There were also chest upon chests upon _shulkers_ of stuff but littered about, so Tommy began searching.  
There had to be food in here somewhere, right?  
After going through nearly every chest, he turned up empty handed.  
Which infuriated him.

“You can build an entire _fucking house_ but you don’t have any food? What do you eat, dirt?”  
Tommy was fuming as he went and looked at the villagers who were all making their stupid sounds and really just a bunch of sad sites.  
He checked a few of their trades before pausing.  
He sold golden carrots.  
For emeralds!  
And Tommy had sure seen a lot of those in one of the shulkers.

The teen scrambled back to the piles of chests, searching through a couple before finding the one he was looking for.  
He managed to get a good ten stacks of emeralds, and he traded as many as he could to get golden carrots.  
Then, when the first villager ran out of stock, he bought out the other villagers who were selling them.  
Fuck whoever lived here, he needed food.

After pocketing the three remaining emeralds he had, Tommy took his new stash and sprinted for his hide-y hole.  
He managed to make it back without being seen (for once) and emptied his full inventory into the practically empty chests that were dappled around.  
He only carried his diamond things, a bucket, a shield, and a couple stacks of wood just in case.  
He filled his shulker with golden carrots and pocketed that as well so he knew he wouldn’t go hungry for a while. 

When he had everything ready he brushed himself off and paused.  
What now?  
He didn’t have an authority to undermine, nobody he could bother and laugh at-  
He felt like he was back in Logstedshire.  
At least back there Dream would visit him.  
Back there he could visit the nether and build paths or build a writing room for-  
Tommy gasped.

“How To Sex 2! Do I still have it? Will it be in my ender chest?”  
Tommy looked around the building to no avail, and pulled out his communicator to see if anyone knew where the closest one was.  
However, when he pulled out the small device the screen was still cracked and the display didn’t turn on.  
“Fuck!”  
He screamed, throwing it to the ground and grabbing a fistful of his own hair. He took a deep breath and looked out the window as a figure flew back into the mansion.  
They seemed to be busy.  
And yet here Tommy was, doing nothing except hiding.  
He grimaced.  
There was technically nothing stopping him from running into the mansion and confronting whomever was inside, but he saw sure if Wilbur, Tubbo, or Techno were here they would tell him not to.  
...but they aren’t here.  
And he’s a man! He can make his own decisions.

Tommy peeked out the window to see if he could see the builder, and almost immediately ducked out of sight when he saw a glint of netherite.  
The mansion owner paused on the entrance and pulled out his communicator, typing something on it before walking around his front yard.  
Tommy glanced at his damaged device with a frown, wishing he could at least read whatever everyone else was saying.  
He looked back to see what the stranger was doing only to catch him jumping down and disappearing.  
Tommy perked up in interest, waiting for the builder to reappear with no sign of him.

Slowly Tommy left the safety of the building, peeking at where the builder had vanished.  
Then he saw the pit.  
A massive hole that looked like it had been carved out with a pickaxe.  
There was a platform of an unmined area, and Tommy saw the builder mining a couple holes and pillaring back up.  
Tommy watched him for a moment longer to ensure he was busy, then scurried back into the mansion.  
Surely there was an ender chest inside, and he could see if he still had his books and his discs and-  
Tommy saw the dark box sitting along the wall.

It had the familiar odd glow and eye that always felt like it was staring at you.  
He cautiously opened the chest and his shoulders fell.  
It was empty.

No books.  
No discs.  
No weapons or ores.  
“Tubbo’s compass...”  
Tommy muttered quietly, staring at the empty space.  
He felt tears start to prick his eyes and shut the chest.  
He really wasn’t on the Dream SMP anymore.  
There were no inside jokes or leverage in his possession.  
No compass that led him back to his best friend.

Tommy wanted to curl up and stay there forever.  
But he needed to move, there was no telling when the builder would be back-

An explosion rang out.  
Tommy flinched so bad he nearly fell over.  
Another boom.  
Another bomb.  
The explosions rang out and Tommy closed his eyes and covered his ears.  
The explosions wouldn’t stop.  
When Tommy opened his eyes again he saw L’Manburg.  
His country and his friends being blown up and turned to ash.  
He heard Technoblade and Philza’s laughter in the wind.  
A masked man in a green hoodie stared at him from where he was perched on the obsidian path.

Someone was shaking him.  
“Are you okay?”  
It was Wilbur.  
Not Ghostbur.  
Not the friendly high-pitched ghost who carried around “blue” and had a pet sheep.  
This was the man who had blown it up the first time, his eyes wide and pleading.  
“Aren’t we the bad guys?”  
His trench-coat was torn.  
Blood was pooling on his clothes.  
Tommy looked at his hands to see stacks of tnt.  
When he looked up again he was in front of the community house.  
“But I didn’t blow it up! I-I swore on my discs!”

There was a hand on his shoulder.  
Tommy looked to see Techno, his tall stature blocking the sun as his crown glinted brightly.  
“You wanna be the hero Tommy?”  
The teenager tensed.  
“No. No please no Techno-“  
“THEN DIE LIKE ONE!”  
“NO!”

Tommy dropped to his knees and covered his ears.  
His eyes were shut as tight as they could.  
But there was nothing.  
No explosion.  
No vibrations through the ground as his home was destroyed.  
No wither that made him feel like his breath was getting stolen from him and his blood was dripping out.

When he opened his eyes he was on a wooden floor.  
There was a shadow nearby and Tommy whipped around to see who it was as he scrambled backwards.

There were two people there.  
The stranger he had seen from afar and Scar.  
The mayor.  
Tommy swallowed.  
This was it.  
This is how he would die.  
Fallen to the floor like a coward instead of by his best friends side-

“Tommy, are you okay?”  
The teenager blinked at Scar’s question.  
“W-what?”  
“I heard you screaming while I was mining,”  
The stranger added, his face twisted with concern,  
“Are you okay?”  
Tommy realized he was breathing heavily and forced it calmer.  
“I... I- yeah. No I’m fine.”  
Tommy stood up, trying to ignore how bad his hands and legs were shaking.  
_If they see it they’ll think I’m weak._

Scar frowned before saying,  
“Buddy, why’d you run away? I understand you’re a bit confused, but that’s why I offered the tour.”

Tommy swallowed.  
_Buddy_. He just wants to trick him like Techno did.  
Like _Dream_ did.  
But should he play along?  
Would they kill him otherwise?  
“Um, y-yeah sorry ‘bout that. I um, forgot my rabbit's foot. I thought it was in the ender chest but nope! It’s empty.”  
Tommy’s gaze drifted back to the box as his heart sunk.  
“It’s empty.”

“Well,”  
Scar said, his tone still friendly and cheerful.  
It reminded Tommy of his only friend in Logsted.  
A shiver swam down his spine but he forced himself to not react.  
“I still have enough enderpearls to give you that tour, and if you want, we can even bring Grian along so it’s not just us.”  
The mayor gestured to the man beside him who waved with a smile.  
Tommy barely managed the wave back.

“Um, sure. Yeah, let’s do that.”  
“Great!”  
Scar cheered, tossing Tommy and Grian some of the pearls,  
“Well, let’s get to the edge of this island and I have enough boats for all of us!”

Tommy managed a small smile as Scar threw his pearl, watching as the mayor landed on top of a tree and waved at the two of them.  
“Let’s go?”  
Grian gave Tommy that same friendly smile as he threw his pearl to land beside Scar.  
Tommy looked at the enderpearl in his hand.  
He didn’t have to follow them.  
He could run away again.  
Escape and survive.

 _“So you just get caught again? Come on Tommy. This is why you’ll never be president.”_  
Tommy grit his teeth at Wilbur’s voice in his head.  
He glared at the tree Scar and Grian had landed on and threw the pearl.

When he landed with the puff of wind, Scar chuckled.  
“I was worried you were going to run away again.”  
Tommy let out a hollow chuckle as Scar pearled away.  
He glanced at Grian who made a motion for Tommy to go first.  
The teen looked at the pearl again before sighing.  
Yeah.  
This was the smarter decision.


	5. Chapter 5- Watching The Sunset

When they reached the water lapping at the shore again, Scar insisted that Grian take the lead. Tommy followed the builder and the mayor stayed close behind. He felt like he was being taken to prison with a guard on either side, but at least he didn’t feel like he was being exiled to Logstedshire.

When they reached the- what was it called...  
“Welcome to the shopping district!”  
Scar crowed, raising his arms in excitement.  
Right, the shopping district.  
When they reached the island, they were immediately met with a large area covered in gray stone. There was also a building made up of colored blocks with mob faces on the walls, and- was that a laser in the water over there?

Scar and Grian began leading him around the shopping district (conveniently ignoring Tommy’s question about the laser as Grian cackled like a madman) and to be honest, Tommy was amazed.

The builds were fascinating and creative and a part of Tommy wished they could have stuff like this in L’Manburg.  
Not that he could build very well, but it’d be nice to see what his friends could do.  
But there was an unspoken rule on that server:  
If you build something big and fancy, it will most likely get pranked or destroyed (Except for Eret’s Gay Castle, because then it was homophobic).

Which kinda sucks, but that’s how it goes with all the wars and fighting back home.  
Tommy frowned.  
He hoped there wasn’t another war happening without him.  
Tubbo needed him.

“Tommy, are you still with us?”  
The teen was pulled from his thoughts by Grian waving a hand in front of his face.  
“Yeah yeah I’m still here dickhead,”  
He grumbled, swatting away the hand.  
Grian gasped and visibly held back a laugh but Scar whirled onto him.  
“Hey! Language.”

Tommy blinked.  
_No way._  
“Who are you? BadBoy’alo?”  
Tommy started giggling, but his joke was met with silence.  
“What? Never ‘eard of him?”  
Scar and Grian glanced at each other before saying,  
“No?”

Tommy cackled.  
He held his stomach and started coughing he was laughing so hard.  
“Oh my god! BadBoyHalo is irrelevant! Wait till I tell him!”  
Tommy caught his breath as the two hermits watched him amusedly.

“Trust new if you knew the guy that would be funny too,”  
Tommy mused, glancing around at the buildings nearby.  
Something in the water caught his eye and he paused and pointed at the dark building.  
“What’s that place?”

He heard Scar sigh and turned to see the mayor’s exasperated expression.  
“That’s Shade-E-E’s. The worst place in the shopping district.”  
“What do they do?”  
“Etho runs it,”  
Grian answered, shaking his head with a smile,  
“He sells free glass and puts bees in your place.”  
Tommy tilted his head and scoffed,  
“Free glass? That’s not a great business plan.”  
“No you don’t understand,”  
Scar growled, glaring at the building,  
“He gives out stacks of light gray glass panes that are all named something different and they fill up your inventory and it is the most annoying thing in the world!”  
Tommy watched Scar fume for a moment before shrugging,  
“But it’s free right? How is he making money?”  
“You pay him to not fill your house with glass and bees,”  
Scar mumbled, turning away from the building.  
“Oh, that’s how it works,”  
Grian mused.

Tommy looked at the giant, ominous building and smiled.  
“Now that’s my kind of business! I need to meet this Etho guy again, I’ll be his second in command!”  
“Tommy, I’m happy to have you here as long as you need to be, but if you start working there I’ll have to help Xisuma get you out of here.”  
Tommy chuckled and shrugged,  
“Well, I guess a fourth time being exiled won’t be so bad.”

They were walking along the path again, past Odea when Scar and Grian stopped.  
Tommy paused as well, turning to look at them as he asked,  
“What’s wrong?”

“Exiled? You were exiled from your old server?”  
Tommy shrugged and kicked a rock that was by his foot.  
“Yeah, technically. I was exiled with all of L’Manburg from the SMP, then Jschlatt exiled me an’ Wilbur to Pogtopia, and then-“  
Images of Tubbo, angry and yelling flashed in Tommy's mind as he paused, turning around and continuing to walk down the path.  
“I don’t wanna talk about it.”

There was silence behind him before he heard Scar and Grian run to catch up.  
“Okay, you don’t have to,”  
Scar said nonchalantly. Although Tommy could see the questioning stare the mayor was giving him. Grian shrugged and tucked his hands into his pockets.  
“Yeah, we can start touring bases now if you want.”

Tommy hummed and looked at the sky.  
The sun would be setting soon.  
“Oh! Where’s the nearest enderchest?”  
“Probably Omega?”  
Grian said, pointing at the large redstone shop.  
Tommy hurried inside and opened the enderchest, but almost immediately closed it again.  
“Fuck. I forgot.”  
“What are you looking for?”  
Grain asked as he followed Tommy inside.  
The teenager sighed.  
“Do you have any discs?”  
Grian shrugged,  
“Yeah, probably.”

Tommy lit up and pressed,  
“Do you have Cat?”  
Grian opened the enderchest himself and pulled out a shulkerbox before smiling.  
“Here you are! Just be sure to give it back.”  
“Yeah yeah sure,”  
Tommy huffed, taking the disc and tucking it into his inventory.  
It wasn’t his disc anyway, he didn’t really care about it.

He ran out of the store and half expected to see the bench beside the tree that overlooked the cliffside, but all he saw was the shopping district once more.

Scar was still standing by the entrance and Tommy turned to him frantically,  
“Do you have any wood on you? Some oak stairs maybe?”

Scar cocked a brow but opened his inventory to check before shaking his head.  
“No, sorry. Probably in one of my chest monsters somewhere.”  
“Grian!”  
Tommy shouted, the other Britt jogging out of the Omega store.  
“Do you have any oak stairs?”

The other hermit shook his head.  
“They’re back at the mansion.”  
Tommy groaned and turned to look at the sun.  
They were running out of time.

“Where’s that log blimp?”  
He asked, looking at the other two.  
“Back up the path?”  
Scar said, although he seemed to be getting more bewildered by the second.  
“Be right back!”  
He shouted, taking off down the path and toward the blimp.  
He opened the chests until he found the oak one (which should have been obvious by the fact it was sitting on an oak platform, but he was in a rush) and grabbed a stack before running back to Scar and Grian.

He looked at where the sun was beginning to set, then stopped.  
There was a massive building in the way where Scar and Grian stood.  
He growled, then shouted,  
“Follow me!”  
As he ran past the mayor and builder.

He heard them hesitate, then their footsteps followed as he sprinted back toward where they had first landed.  
There was a perfect view of the sunset beside the Head Shop (which still made Tommy uneasy. He didn’t like imagining Dream playing with his decapitated head).

He made a crafting table and threw down enough stairs for all of them to sit together on the bench.  
“Can I borrow a diamond from one of you?”  
He asked as Scar and Grian stood awkwardly behind the bench.  
“Uh... sure.”  
Scar said, pulling out a brown shulkerbox before throwing Tommy a diamond.  
The teen crafted a jukebox, placed it down, and started playing Cat.

As the first few notes of the song played, Tommy sat on the bench.  
He watched the sun as it slowly began to sink into the ocean, the sky beginning to turn rosy.  
“You guys can sit with me,”  
He mumbled to the other two, not taking his eyes off the sun.

He heard then slowly move to sit beside him as the song continued.  
He felt the heat of the sun on his face and closed his eyes.  
If he tuned out the crashing waves of the ocean then he could imagine he was on the bench back in L’Manburg.  
In front of his home, the leaves swishing behind him and Tubbo humming quietly along to the beats of the song.

When he opened his eyes they were blurry.  
He didn’t realize he was crying until he felt a tear drip down his cheek and he swiped it away.  
He sniffled as the last of the sun’s rays disappeared under the water and the song faded out.

They sat on the bench for a while after Cat had stopped, listening to the waves and watching the sky darken.  
Stars were glimmering high above.

Tommy was going to do this with Tubbo after the war.  
After all the chaos had ended they were going to sit on the bench and listen to whatever discs he had in his enderchest.  
After all, Dream had Cat and Mellohi now.  
He grit his teeth.  
He had forgotten how long it had been since he heard Cat.

He stood up, taking the disc out of the jukebox and throwing it at Grian who almost dropped it.

“I want to go home.”  
Tommy said quietly, staring at the gray stone beneath his feet.

There was a pause before he heard Scar and Grian approach him.  
“We know. Xisuma is working on it.”  
Scar placed a hand on Tommy’s shoulder but the teen shook it off.  
When he turned to look at the hermits, for a moment he saw Techno and Wilbur.  
When he blinked they were back.

Tommy scoffed.  
His brothers haunted him.

Tommy felt his lip tremble as images of Wilbur playing the guitar flashed through his mind.  
He saw Techno teaching him how to fight and Tubbo chasing bees.  
He saw Philza bringing dinner to the table as Tubbo pouted about not being able to play with his toys at the table.

Tommy started crying.  
He couldn’t stop it.  
He saw Wilbur proudly wearing his suit as Tubbo and Fundy stood beside him.  
He saw Tubbo trapped on stage as Techno pointed fireworks at his face.  
He saw Wilbur standing in a cave as explosions ricocheted underneath L’Manburg, and Philza shakily standing beside him.  
He saw the betrayal in Tubbo’s face as he told Dream to escort Tommy out of L’Manburg.

Tommy wasn’t sure how long he cried.  
Long enough that he ran out of tears and his throat hurt.  
Not long enough that he saw the sun again.  
He saw the moon though.  
A thin little swipe of silver in the sky.  
It looked ready to hide in the darkness of the sky and Tommy wanted to do the same.

To say he was embarrassed to have cried as hard as he did in front of two strangers who could kill him with one swipe of their swords was an understatement.  
He wished he had enough blocks to build all the way to height limit and stay there until Xisuma told him he could leave.

He didn’t say anything as Scar and Grian discussed where he should sleep, and eventually they agreed to let him stay in the house they had found him in yesterday.

Tommy followed after them in his boat (they both offered to take him in their boat so he wouldn’t have to paddle) and then they all enderpearled to Scar’s village.  
Scar helped Tommy settle down a bit in the room, bringing him a potted plant and some extra pillows.  
He offered to bring someone named Jellie in to help him sleep, but Tommy turned him down with a shake of his head.  
He thought that was a bit weird.

Then Scar left, and Grian took off with his elytra toward the mansion.  
Tommy was still glad he couldn’t hear the fireworks inside.

Tommy stared at the ceiling as silence hang heavy in the room.  
He still had stuff in the small house by Grian’s mansion, but he didn’t have enough pearls to go himself.

 _I’ll ask Scar to go with me tomorrow_.  
The thought floated around his head for a moment before he shot it down.  
_No. I can’t get too comfortable. He’ll manipulate just like Dream did. I’m not a bitch._  
Tommy closed his eyes and forced himself to sleep.

He hated that it was so quiet.  
At least in L’Manburg there was always someone walking around or yelling at night.  
In Pogtopia Wilbur was usually up softly playing the L’Manburg national anthem.  
In Logsted he had the ocean and Mushroom Henry softly mooing.  
But here it was quiet.  
It made Tommy’s skin crawl.


	6. Chapter 6- Guarded

When Tommy woke up, he was still alone.  
Which was a good thing, he didn’t want to be surrounded by strangers again, but he missed being awoken to Fundy screaming as he ran down the prime path.  
Or even Techno nudging him awake so they could do whatever the piglin had planned for that day.

But it was quiet.  
And he was alone.  
Tommy looked at the assorted pillows around him and picked one up.  
He held it to his chest, leaning his chin on the top of it.  
He tried imagining it was Tubbo, but the pillow was too soft.  
No heartbeat that helped him remember his best friend was still alive.

He huffed and threw the pillow, standing up and rummaging through his things to get to his golden carrots.  
When he had his breakfast, he grabbed his things and walked outside.  
He walked to the fountain in the middle of the village, sitting down on the edge and staring at the rippling water and giant crystal structure.

He dipped his fingers in the cold water, raking his hand through it and allowing himself to enjoy the sensation.  
The water reminded him of something.

A flash of a podium appeared behind his eyes.  
There was a large “S” on the stone, and Tubbo was standing at the microphone with a bright smile.

Tommy winced.  
A parrot twittered somewhere in the trees.  
He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose with his dry hand.  
“What the fuck is wrong with me?”

“Hello!”  
The teen turned to look at the voice, seeing a young woman with brown hair smiling at him while holding a shulker box.  
A flower-crown of alliums sat atop her head, the light purple matched her cardigan.  
“I’m Stressmonster, but you can call me Stress. You’re Tommy, right?”

Tommy blinked at her in response.  
_Holy shit a woman._  
“Um, I brought you a couple things! I know you won’t be here for very long but I thought you might enjoy it anyway.”  
She handed him the bright red shulker, and the teen held it gingerly.  
_Is it a trap?_

“Thank you,”  
He said softly, eyeing the box.  
“Yeah of course!”  
She chirped brightly, getting her rockets out,  
“I’m right around the corner, so I’ll be there if you need anything!”

Stress took to the air, Tommy only able to plug one ear as the other held the box.  
He saw a flash of Techno’s face but blinked it away.  
He placed the box down and opened it up, his eyes lighting up at what was inside.

It was neatly organized, and there was a note in the middle that read  
“Hope this improves your stay! <3  
-From Stress”  
There were a couple stacks of cookies and a couple cakes, along with a dozen or so poppies and tulips. 

He smiled at the gift but it didn’t last long.  
Was she like Bad?  
Was she giving this to him out of pity or because she wanted to?  
Tommy’s face melted into a frown.  
Probably pity.  
“I don’t need your pity shit,”  
He spat, picking it up and tucking it in one of the chests inside his temporary home.  
He didn’t need it.  
He didn’t need pity.

The teen stomped back outside, a headache settling into his skull as the sun grew brighter and hotter.  
He hated the jungle.

“Ahoy down there!”  
Tommy looked up for the spruce of the voice, seeing Scar float down on his wings before carefully landing.

“How are you this fine morning, Tommy?”  
The teen glared at the mayor.  
His outfit flickered between the purple suit and a green hoodie.  
Tommy turned away from him and spat,  
“Why the fuck are you here?”

Scar was quiet for a moment before softly saying,  
“Well, I don’t want you to be alone, I know I would be nervous by myself in a strange place.”

“Well I’m not you! I can handle being by myself. I don’t need your pity.”  
Tommy stomped off in the other direction and Scar ran after him.

“Are you sure? I really don’t mind just walking around with you everywhere.”  
Tommy huffed and whirled to face the mayor.  
“Just leave me alone! I don’t want you here!”

He turned and ran into the thicker part of the jungle.  
He hated it out here, but at least he wasn’t going to be manipulated by anyone.  
He didn’t run for long, only a couple dozen blocks before he sat in a patch of grass and waited.  
He plugged his ears, watching the skies to see if the mayor would leave.

There were several long minutes, and Tommy was about to go back and see if the mayor was _alive_ or not, but then he saw Scar take off with his rockets and elytra.

Tommy huffed, dropping his hands and staring at the foliage in front of him.  
He broke some of the grass and managed to grab some seeds.  
_Maybe I can make a bit of a farm for myself somewhere?_

He stood up and was met face-to-face with a beak.  
He froze, blinking at the feathered face in front of him.  
It squawked loudly and he narrowed his eyes.  
“Stupid fancy chicken.”  
He growled, moving around the bird and walking back to the village.

He only walked a couple steps before the bird was back in his vision, landing on a branch and fluffing its scarlet feathers.  
It tweeted again, tilting its head at him and eyeing him down.  
Tommy stared at it for a moment before waving his arms at it and shooing it away.  
“Fuck off!”  
He shouted, glaring at the bird as it cawed and flew away.

He stomped through the rest of the forest, but when he reached the tree line a flurry of ruby feathers flapped and landed at his feet, the bird letting out an annoyed crow as it stared at him.

Tommy groaned before pointing harshly at the bird. The action startled the bird and it ruffled its feathers but eyed him again.  
“Why are you following me? Leave me alone!”  
The bird didn’t move, but twittered quietly.  
Tommy snarled and went around a tree to avoid the parrot, but as soon as he moved around it the bird jumped to be in front of him again.

Tommy groaned loudly, but gave up and plopped in front of the avian.  
“What the fuck do you want, bitch?”  
The bird stared at him, then bent its head and itched its feathers before looking back at Tommy with a chirp.  
The teen just stared at the bird with a sigh.  
The bird slowly hopped closer, then tapped his hand with its beak.  
“What?”  
He opened his hand, forgetting that he had a fistful of seeds until the parrot started eating them.  
“Oh. Sorry.”  
He grumbled, not moving as the bird finished off the seeds.  
When it was done, it scratched itself with its talons and twittered softly.

Tommy stared at it, then scoffed.  
“I guess you’re tamed now. I’ll call you... Bird Henry.”  
The scarlet bird tilted its head.  
“Yeah, it was kind of dumb. How about... Bitch Bird!”  
The parrot squawked angrily and flapped its wings.  
“Fine! Fine. No bitch bird.”  
Tommy stared at the bird as it licked its beak and looked at something in the village.  
Tommy snapped his fingers with a smirk,  
“I’ve got it! Michael! Big M!”  
The parrot turned back to Tommy and flew up onto his shoulder.

The teen froze for a moment, then cheered,  
“Yeah!!!!! Michael!!!!!!”  
The parrot shrieked with him, flapping its wings until Tommy calmed down.  
“Alright Big M. Let’s go fuck some people up!”  
Michael pecked his ear and the teen yelped.  
“Fine! Bitch. Then what do we do?”  
When the parrot didn’t say anything, Tommy huffed.

He stood up carefully to ensure Michael didn’t fall off, then made his way through the village, looking around at what Scar had built.  
Which, to be honest, was extremely impressive.  
The minute detail of everything including the pathway he was following was awe inspiring to say the least.  
Not that Tommy would ever tell Scar, that would be like telling Dream you think his speed running is cool, or Techno that his ability to gather a ton of supplies in a short amount of time is impressive.  
You don’t do it.  
They're the enemy.

Tommy sighed.  
They’re the enemy.  
His brother who let him hide out at his house and keep him safe from Dream was his enemy now.

Michael twittered and whistled about something, so Tommy looked up to see what it was only to pause.  
It was another person circling above him, but it took Tommy a moment to recognize the red sweater.  
_Grian._

Tommy turned back to Michael, the bird staring up at the flying hermit with a twist of its head.  
The teen watched Grian as the hermit drifted toward the ground, then bolted for his temporary house.  
He slammed the door when the hermit landed.

He looked around the building frantically, Michael twittering nervously as it watched him.  
He grabbed some of the wood he had and threw it into the crafting table, making a couple trapdoors before setting Michael on the floor.

If these had hidden him from Dream, surely they could hide Michael from Grian.  
He placed the trapdoors around the parrot, then closed them to enclose the bird.  
He stepped back to make sure the bird was hidden when the door opened.  
“Hello? Tommy? How are you?”

The teenager whipped around to look at the builder and shuffled awkwardly in front of the small box Michael was in.  
“I-I’m doing fine. Just chillin’”

Grian smiled,  
“Well, that’s good. I’m glad you’re comfortable.”  
Tommy nodded, but froze when Michael chirped from inside the box.  
Grian perked up at the sound, then looked around.  
“Has a pesky bird gotten inside your home?”  
The builder chuckled, bending over to check under Tommy’s bed.  
“No. Nothing’s in here.”  
Tommy quipped, staying between Grian and Michael.

The parrot squawked, clearly growing uncomfortable in the small and dark place.  
“Are you sure? I’m fairly certain there is a pesky bird here.”  
“Yes! I’m sure,”  
Tommy swallowed, not moving as Grian grew closer.  
_Michael, please don’t be a dickhead and shut your beak-_

Scratching came from inside the box and Tommy felt his heart sink as Grian turned to face him with a cocked brow.  
“Have you got a bird underneath those trapdoors?”

Tommy was stiff as a board and tried to block Grian from opening one of the doors, but the other Britt faked a lunge and opened it when Tommy moved the other way.

“There he is,”  
Grian said triumphantly as Michael flew to land on Tommy’s shoulder,  
“Why was your bird in there?”

The teen swallowed before taking a step away from Grian.  
“Can you... not take him? I don’t even like him that much, he’s more annoying than anything. I-I don’t have anything worth using as leverage. Nor do I have anything you would want the leverage for...”  
Tommy chuckled nervously as he fished his sword and shield out of his inventory.  
He gently shifted the parrot off his shoulder and onto the bed behind him.  
Michael was all he had.  
He’d give Grian a fight before giving him up.

The hermit was quiet for a moment, then he pulled his netherite axe out.  
_Shit!_  
Tommy tensed as he shifted into a fighting stance.  
There wasn’t much room, his sword might get caught in the wall if he wasn’t careful.  
Tommy moved to pull his axe out instead so he could be more precise, but then Grian moved toward him.

Tommy lunged first, jumping to land a crit as Grian looked like he nearly jumped out of his skin.  
“Wha- Tommy!”

The teen struck the netherite armor again, knowing he had at least done a heart of damage at that point.  
_Just a bit more crits. I can kill him._

“Tommy! Stop!”  
The axe in Grian’s hand landed heavy against Tommy’s armor.  
The teen grunted as he put his shield up.  
He was at five and a half hearts.  
Grian still hadn’t pulled out a shield, so if he didn’t have one and Tommy was smart, he could still win-

“Tommy! Please calm down!”  
The teen glanced at the builder, Grian standing with his hands up and non-threatening.  
What was he doing?  
“Tommy, I’m not going to take your bird. I was just going to break the trapdoors so he doesn’t get stuck in there again. I won’t if you don’t want me to though.”

Tommy glanced between Grian and the box Michael had been in before his eyes locked on the netherite axe again.  
Grian must have noticed because then he was tucking the weapon back into his inventory.

“See? I mean you no harm.”  
Tommy put his shield down, but kept it in his hand.  
“What do you want?”  
The builder scoffed before shaking his head,  
“I don’t want anything, I was just checking on you.”

Tommy snarled,  
“Well I don’t need anyone to fuckin’ check up on me! Leave me alone!”

Grian nodded slowly, then began to back up out of the house.  
“Alright, fine. I’m sorry.”

When Grian walked outside, Tommy slammed the door closed before slumping to the floor. He put his sword and shield away, instead pulling out some golden carrots so he could heal.

Michael stared at him from where he was perched on the bed.  
“What? I tried to protect you, why are you glaring at me?”  
Michael cooed before gliding off the bed and into Tommy’s lap.  
The teen sighed and pet his head feathers.  
“I lost all of my pets back on Dream SMP. I’m not going to lose you too.”

Michael twittered softly, nuzzling into Tommy’s touch.  
The teen smiled, shifting uncomfortably against the wooden floor and clunky armor.  
However, Michael seemed to be right at home as he began to doze to sleep.  
Tommy huffed impatiently, but eventually joined the parrot in a nap.

As the two dozed softly in the cottage, the sun began to sink into the ocean.  
The server began to quiet as most began to sleep.

On the shopping district near the Head Shop, sat on the small wooden bench and holding a small green disc, sat Grian.  
As the sky began to bleed, he pushed the disc into the jukebox.

He stared at the sun and the water as the song began to softly play against the waves.  
Grian sighed, then closed his eyes to let the last of the sun’s rays wash over him.  
He sat there until the sun had vanished and the disc had run quiet before he slowly packed up his things.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _Comms for the day_ :
> 
> Stressmonster: Hope you enjoy the gift Tommy! <3  
> Rendog: Can I get a gift too??  
> Stressmonster: Give me a bit to bake first!  
> Rendog: :D
> 
> ...
> 
> _GoodTimesWithScar msg to Tommyinnit: Sorry if I bothered you, I just want to help. I’ll wait for you to message me for help before I bother you again._  
>  **MSG failed to send**  
>  _GoodTimesWithScar msg to Tommyinnit: Sorry for intruding, let me know if you need anything._  
>  **MSG failed to send**
> 
> GoodTimesWithScar: Hey Tommy, sorry to bother you but can you read this?
> 
> …
> 
> Stressmonster: Tommy?  
> Xisuma: I’m not sure if his communicator is functioning. I can try and contact him?  
> GoodTimesWithScar: I tried messaging him, it failed both times.  
> Xisuma: I’ll check on him.  
> Grian: I’d be careful, he’s really wary.  
> Xisuma: I’ll keep that in mind, thanks.
> 
> _Grian msg to Xisuma: I think somethings up... he tried to attack me to protect his pet bird. Please be careful_  
>  _Xisuma msg to Grian: will do_


	7. Chapter 7- Bad Guy

The sun sat heavy in the azure sky.  
A suit coat was draped on a scorched fence post as the dark color roasted whomever wore it in the heat.  
A boy stood nearby, his white shirt billowing in the soft breeze.  
He stood over a small monument, his eyes stuck on the ground and refusing to read the words that were written on the plaque.  
The ground wasn’t even disturbed.

“Tubbo... are you okay?”  
The boy scoffed at the familiar voice. He didn’t turn to face the familiar ghost when he asked softly,  
“Do I look okay?”

Ghostbur was quiet for a bit before he began to read the monument aloud,  
“For Tommyinnit. For all the mistakes he made, he was still a great friend. L’Manburg owes him it’s freedom.”

Freedom had been scratched out to say “death”, and it made Tubbo sick.  
He knew the mocking handwriting.  
It was too neat to be anyone other than Niki.

“Why isn’t he a ghost, Ghostbur? Why just you?”  
The spirit clutched the azure stone in his hand and it turned slightly darker.  
“Maybe... he didn’t have any unfinished business?”  
Tubbo scoffed as he wiped tears onto his sleeves.  
“You’re wrong Wilbur. We both know how much he wanted his discs.”  
“Maybe he gave up?”  
Tubbo swallowed before slowly raising his eyes to the monument.  
“That’s not fair.”  
“What isn’t, Tubbo?”

“That he can just- die like that! And not come back! He risks his life for L’Manburg and his friends and I ship him off like a coward-“  
Tubbo’s voice cracked sharply and he had to pause to compose himself.  
“I exiled him like a coward and just when he comes back and we are so close to being friends again... he’s gone. Taken by a stupid lightning bolt! And he gets to leave? To give up?”

Tubbo grabbed a fistful of his hair and Wilbur watched him with concern clear on his slightly translucent face.  
“It’s not fair, Wilbur! What if I want to give up? What if I want to run away and lose my memories and...”  
Tubbo trailed off as sobs shook his shoulders.  
Ghostbur watched him for a moment before silently offering the young president the Blue.  
Tubbo grabbed it and the stone blossomed into a dark cerulean.

The ghost watched the boy cry over the empty grave until a light rain began to patter the ground.  
Ghostbur winced at the sizzling sound the rain made against his skin.  
“I just want him back,”  
Tubbo whimpered finally, his white shirt clinging to his body,  
“I don’t care if he won’t remember anything. Or has an ugly burn scar on his entire face, I just want my best friend back.”

Wilbur swallowed before looking up at the sky.  
“I’ll... I’ll leave you be Tubbo. Here’s some more Blue.”  
The ghost handed the president some more of the clear stones before he floated away from the grave.  
Tubbo’s wails made Wilbur’s spirit crawl as he hovered over to the Crater.  
Did it really bother people that he couldn’t remember things?  
Was his scar that bad?

He reached behind him and felt the tear in his sweater, wincing from the sensitive wound.  
When he touched the scar, he heard an explosion.  
He moved his hand away like he had touched a stove.  
He didn’t like that memory.

Ghostbur looked out into what used to be L’Manburg. Stray blocks were scattered from the hundreds of explosions.

He remembered when Tommy had stared at Dream with a bow in his shaking hands.  
He remembered watching the arrow pierce Tommy’s heart and blood pool around him until he faded away, reappearing somewhere up the prime path and running back to them.  
He had been clutching his chest as he ran toward Wilbur.  
Wilbur had seen the fear in his younger brother’s eyes as he lost his first canon life.

Wilbur felt his face as he blinked from the memory.  
It was wet.  
He knew it wasn’t from the rain.  
“Why didn’t you become a ghost, Tommy?”  
He asked the rain as it fell in front of him.

===

Tommy sat up with a gasp, startling Michael from his lap. His hands were shaking as he felt coolness on his face.  
When he touched it, he realized they were tears trailing down his cheeks and he wiped them as quick as possible.

What had been that dream?  
Was that what was going on Dream SMP right now?  
Tommy scoffed.  
No way.  
Too many people hated him to give him a grave or a monument.  
Even Tubbo.

Tommy yawned and sat up, Michael preening his feathers as he eyed the teen.  
They stared at each other until Michael perked up and looked at the door with a chirp.

Tommy turned to look at the door, then glanced at the slit of light underneath the wood.  
There was a shadow underneath.  
Tommy stiffened and hurried to his feet as a knock rang out from the spruce door.

“Tommy? Can I talk to you?”  
The teen didn’t recognize the voice and shouted,  
“Go away!”  
As he gathered his sword and shield into his hands.

“It’s me, Xisuma. I want to see your communicator.”  
Tommy sat for a moment before slowly moving toward the door and opening it.  
“What about it?”

Tommy hated that he could only see the admin’s eyes, but it was better than the blank stare of Dream’s mask.  
“We can’t seem to message you, so I wanted to see if there was something up with your communicator.”  
Tommy roughly pulled the device out of his pocket before handing it over to Xisuma.  
“It’s broken. It was when I spawned.”

The admin took the device gingerly before hissing through his teeth.  
“Oh... that’s bad. I’ll see what I can do?”  
Tommy scoffed and shook his head.  
“No. I just want to go home. I don’t care about the goddamn thing.”  
Xisuma paused before shrugging.  
“Alright. If you don’t mind I’ll take this with me, just in case it helps me send you back.”

“Sure. Whatever.”  
Tommy shut the door and turned to see Michael staring at him from where he had flown onto the bed.  
The bird flapped his wings and squawked at him.  
“Oh shut up! I just want to go home, okay!”  
Michael twittered quietly, tilting his head. Tommy snarled,  
“I want Tubbo back! I don’t care about you anyway!”  
Michael stared at him for a moment before mimicking the teen, flapping his wings and squawking loudly.

Tommy growled before shouting,  
“The discs were worth more than you anyway!”

For a moment he saw Tubbo staring at him in shock, water washing down the destroyed wall behind him.  
When he blinked Michael was back.  
“I-I mean Tubbo. I want Tubbo more than...”  
Michael chirped and flapped to Tommy’s feet.  
The teen stared at the bird for a moment before kneeling down and petting his head feathers.  
“I’m a bad guy, aren’t I?”  
Tommy smiled at the scarlet bird, but his smile quickly melted into a stream of tears.  
“Wilbur was right...”  
He whimpered as his shoulders shook.

Xisuma swallowed as he listened to the other side of the door.  
Grian was right. Something was up.

===

Tommy didn’t leave his house for the entire day.  
He wanted to, he was bored out of his mind, but the fear of someone killing Michael when he wasn’t looking or one of them swooping out of the sky to take his last canon life was enough to keep him inside.

He did manage to find a book and quill in a barrel after digging around for a while, the poor thing was covered in dust but completely blank.  
Forgotten.  
Probably just like him.

Tommy sighed as he plopped down on the bed, staring at the blank pages for a few minutes before beginning to write.

“ _Day 4_

_I hate it here. Everyone has full netherite, wings, rockets, and thousands of stacks of tnt.  
I can die at any moment.  
At least I found Michael.  
He’s a little stupid but at least he’s cute otherwise I might have to kill him._

_I don’t think I could actually kill him.  
I tried to fight someone yesterday and nearly died to protect him.  
Is it stupid of me to protect this bird?  
No  
No I’m not stupid. _

_A few of the people tried to get me pity things.  
I don’t need pity.  
Do I?  
No.  
Not yet._

_I’m strong.  
Stronger than when Dream manipulated me.  
I can survive._”

Tommy was interrupted by a tallon settling on his hand.  
He looked up at Michael to see the parrot tweet at him and look at the pile of golden carrots behind him.

“Oh, you hungry?”  
Michael flapped his wings once before turning to eye him down.  
“Alright. Let me get you some seeds.”

Tommy carefully closed the book and stood up to dig through the miscellaneous chests and barrels around before finding a handful of seeds and holding them out to the parrot.  
He would need to get some more later.

Michael grew excited at the seeds and quickly hopped closer to eat.  
Tommy smiled softly as he watched the bird eat.

Would a bad guy do this?  
Tommy saw flashes of Techno protecting his horse and Dream protecting Beckerson and Mars.  
His smile fell.  
Yeah.  
Bad people can take care of animals.

===

Nobody visited him anymore.  
Which was good.  
Maybe.

Tommy didn’t have to fight anyone, and no one tried to kill him, so that was good!  
But it also meant he was alone.  
Again.  
He had Michael, sure, but there was no Tubbo.  
No Ghostbur.  
No Dream.

So Tommy turned to writing.  
(Not How to Sex 3 just yet... he wasn’t in the right headspace), but he kept his journal.  
It was the only thing that helped him with the passing days.

“ _Day 5_

_I took Michael on a walk today.  
He said hello to his bird friends as I stood nearby.  
I wish I had friends._

_Day 6_

_Michael and I had a fight.  
I accidentally punched him.  
I apologized but I can’t bear being near him.  
I’m a bad guy._

_Day 7_

_It’s been a week.  
Shouldn’t Xisuma have found a way to get me home by now?_

_Dream would have spoken to me by now._ ”

Tommy stared at the words on the page.  
He knew he had written them, but they didn’t feel like his words.  
Nor his letters.

He looked out the window.  
Michael was out there somewhere.  
He had flown out last night and still wasn’t back.  
Tommy wondered if he was dead.

There was a knock on the door.  
Tommy looked at it but didn’t move.  
He had heard the knock before.  
In his dreams when he would open it and see Tubbo or Wilbur.  
Or Dream.

He was probably hearing things.  
There was a chirp and a voice spoke on the other side of the spruce.  
It was too muffled to make out what was being said but Tommy tensed all the same.

He swallowed and stood, nearly kicking his practically empty shulker of golden carrots.  
Another knock tapped the door.

Tommy hesitated in front of it for a moment before opening the door.

The first thing he was met with was scarlet feathers flapping into his face excitedly.  
Chirps and tweets attacked his ears as he stared at the parrot that landed on his shoulder.  
He paused for only a second before a huge grin hit his face.

“Michael! You’re not dead!”  
The parrot nuzzled his cheek and Tommy giggled.

“Have you been... in there alone?”  
The teen jumped at the voice and turned back toward the door.  
The guy in the red sweater was standing there with his brows creased worriedly.  
Grian?

“Yeah. Alone.”  
Tommy grunted, narrowing his eyes at the builder.  
Grian sighed before shrugging.

“I know you don’t like people barging in on you, and Xisuma said your communicator was kaput, but do you want me to hang out for a bit? I’ll leave if you want me to but-“  
“No,”  
Tommy spoke before he realized what he was about to say.  
“Don’t leave.”

Grian watched the teenager for a moment before nodding.  
“Okay, I won’t.”

Tommy swallowed before nodding.  
He didn’t trust the guy, but he couldn’t be alone.  
Not anymore.

They walked around Scar’s village for a few hours, not really talking, just looking at the builds and watching Michael fly from rooftop to rooftop.

Grian tried to ask Tommy a few questions, but the teen didn’t answer any.  
Eventually the hermit cracked a few jokes and the tense air lightened a bit as they laughed.

Tommy made a joke about Americans being bad and Grian laughed.  
The teen smiled.  
He liked this guy.


	8. Chapter 8- Uncertainty

A man in a green hoodie stood atop a cobblestone tower that reached build limit.  
It was cold up there, the wind whipping his clothes around as the chill seeped into his skin.  
He didn’t care though.  
His smiling mask stared off into the distance, watching the people below mill about.  
He saw Tubbo trudging along a stone brick path that led away from the rest of the server. Usually the ghost was with the kid, but he hadn’t seen the guy in a few days.

He turned back toward the crater that ruined the earth in the other direction, where he could just make out a small cobblestone structure.  
It was _his_ favorite block after all.

Dream growled and punched the stone beside him.  
He checked his inventory to see the two discs.

_They don’t matter anymore._  
He thought numbly.  
 _No one else cares about them._

He pulled out a flint and steel and lit the block behind him.  
He stared at the fire for a moment before signing and putting it out.  
Not yet.  
He would keep them just in case the stupid child’s ghost came back with a vengeance.  
 _But it’s already been a week. He would have appeared by now._

“He’ll be back,”  
Dream mumbled under his breath, pointing his crossbow at the grave and firing an arrow to get lodged in the stone.  
“He’s not done with me.”  
Dream opened the enderchest that hummed with energy nearby.  
He tucked the discs away and his hand hovered over a book.  
The leather was tattered and the gold letters were barely legible, but Dream knew what it said.

Their game of chess hadn’t finished yet.

===

Tommy stared at the objects in his hand.  
“BDubs says I’m the best flyer on the server, but I think Tango is. I mean, he flies with actual fireworks that blow up! I think I would have crashed many times with those,”  
Grian was talking a mile a minute, tossing the fireworks back and forth in his hands,  
“But I think I can teach alright, so hopefully we can get you soaring in no time!”

Grian turned to look at Tommy with a wide smile on his lips while the teen stared dumbfounded back at the builder.  
“I’m not sure I want to fly...”  
He mumbled, every muscle in his body tensed as he held the small rocket.  
“Well it’s always scary the first time, and with your armor you should be fine. Plus I have some golden apples just to be on the safe side!”

Grian held the apples excitedly and Tommy swallowed.  
“And you’re sure these won’t explode?”  
“Of course! They’re duds, they’re only used for flying.”

Tommy nodded and took a deep breath. He held up the wings that Grian had handed him.  
“And how do I put these on?”

“You take off your chestplate, and I can help you with the straps. It’s always a bit confusing the first couple times you out on elytra.”

Tommy slowly undid his armor before tucking it away in his inventory and Grian helped him put the elytra on and make sure everything was secure.

“Alright! Now we should probably start with the basics. Why don’t we enderpearl on top of that tree?”

Tommy watched as the green orb was thrown and Grian teleported on top of one of the giant jungle trees.  
He quickly followed the builder.

“Alright, let’s get the basics. Gliding is really easy, you’d just need to make sure you stay more horizontal than vertical. Like this-“

Grian jumped off the leaves and shifted horizontally, the wings opening up behind him as he smoothly glided down and landed on another tree.

“Now you try!”  
He shouted up.  
Tommy felt his body trembling but he tried to force it to stop.  
He wasn’t scared.  
This was easy!  
Everyone on this server did it.

He took a deep breath and held it as he leapt.  
He tried moving horizontally, but moved too far and stared flying headfirst into the tree below.  
He screamed and tried to correct himself, moving too far and landing heavily on his feet.  
He only took half a heart of damage, but his eyes were wide and his lungs were begging for oxygen.

“Are you alright?”  
Grian chuckled beside him.  
“Do I look alright?”  
Tommy shrieked, pointing to himself,  
“I almost fucking died, of course I’m not alright!”

The builder shrugged,  
“Well you’d respawn at your bed, right? So we would just try again-“  
“No! No no no I’m on my last life. I’ll die forever.”  
Grian stared at him for a moment before nodding.  
“Okay, well that’s why we have the golden apples, remember? To make sure you don’t.”  
Grian tossed him a few of the yellow fruit and Tommy nodded as he ate one.

“Better?”  
The hermit asked. Tommy nodded, then grumpily said,  
“How did you get so ‘orizontal? I almost hit my head!”

“Just practice, and lots of it. Do you want to try again?”  
Tommy stared at the ground below before nodding slowly.  
“Alright! Just trust the wings. The more you lean forward the faster you’ll move, so try and keep yourself level. You’ve got this.”

The builder jumped off the tree and landed neatly on the ground, turning back toward Tommy and giving him a thumbs up.

Tommy swallowed.  
He could mlg water, that would be faster and easier than floating down on these wings.

_“Tommy! I can’t do it! It’s impossible!”_  
The teen stiffened at the voice.  
He turned to see Tubbo staring at him with tears in his eyes, scraps and bruises littering his body as he held the bucket of water.  
Tommy had picked it up a lot faster than his best friend, and Tubbo had wanted pointers.  
The kid was struggling big time.

“You just have to take a deep breath. The floor is a lot more scared of you than you are of it,”  
Tommy didn’t know what he was saying.  
He almost never did, but the words seemed to comfort the other boy anyway.  
Tommy watched as Tubbo jumped off the small cliff and placed the block of water.  
Tommy heard his gasp from the cliff-side.  
“I did it! I did it, Tommy!!”  
“Good job Tubbo!”  
He shouted as the other boy splashed around in the puddle.

He chuckled and blinked, and he was back atop the tree.  
Grian was still staring at him from the base.

_Right. The elytra are more scared of my than I am of it._  
Tommy took a deep breath, then jumped.

He stuck his arms out and held them still to try and stabilize, and finally managed to level out.  
He scoffed,  
“I did it! I did it Grian!”  
“Careful Tommy!”  
Came the immediate shout, and the teen looked up as he was about to slam into a tree.

He shrieked and turned abruptly, losing his balance and nearly barrel-rolling as he waved his hands in frantically to try and grab something.  
“Tommy you need to calm down!”  
“I can’t!”

Tommy closed his eyes and the moment his hands felt something he held tight.  
His momentum shifted abruptly and instead of falling he was swinging.  
A force hit him heavily on his left side and his breath was knocked from his lungs, but his hands held tight.  
His swinging slowed and when he stopped he slowly opened his eyes.  
His left arm was throbbing.

“Tommy!”  
The teen looked down at the builder who was still about twenty blocks below him.  
“You need to let go of the vine!”  
“Fuck you!”  
Tommy yelled back, not really meaning it, but the fear and adrenaline made his nerves shorter than usual.

Tommy wanted to take the stupid wings off, but he knew that if he started unstrapping, he would start sliding down the vine.  
He was stuck.

“Tommy you’re going to be fine! You need to let go!”  
“No! I’ll die and it’ll be painful and it’ll suck!”

Grian was quiet for a moment before Tommy heard the splash of water.  
“I placed a water bucket, if you stay upright above the water, your wings won’t activate and you’ll be fine.”

The teen stared at the water below him.  
His hands were starting to hurt from holding the vine so tight.  
“Okay...”  
He said, pretending his voice wasn’t shaking.

_Just stay upright. Stay upright. Upright._

Tommy swallowed, then let go of the vine.  
He managed to be just above the water, then stayed upright.   
He felt his wings try and open, but he kept falling like normal and felt relief fill his chest when he hit the water.

“Are you okay, Tommy?”  
Grian asked, hurrying over to the teen’s side.   
“Get these fucking things off me!”  
He shouted, pulling frantically at the harness.  
“Okay, okay, let me help you.”  
Tommy huffed as Grian moved behind him and began undoing the straps.

“There,”  
The hermit said gently as the elytra fell off his shoulders.  
“Thank you,”  
Tommy mumbled.

They sat for a bit in the water, just listening to the jungle for a bit. Grian sighed and Tommy turned to look at him.  
“I’m sorry Tommy. I knew you were nervous and still talked you into it. It’s my fault.”  
Tommy dropped his gaze to the soaked ground and didn’t say anything.

Grian was trying to be helpful... maybe.  
Tommy wanted to believe him.  
He was just too shaken to think straight.

They sat for a little longer before Grian picked the water back up.  
“Come on, I’ll take you back to the village.”

Tommy nodded and stood up, ignoring his wet clothes as they walked back into the forest.  
Grian used his tools to clear a path as they walked, and Tommy was silently thankful.  
When they reached Tommy’s house, the sun was beginning to set.  
Tommy wished Tubbo was here.

“Grian,”  
Tommy said when they reached the door,  
“Can you ask Xisuma when I can go home?”

Grian smiled at the teen before nodding.  
“Okay. I will.”  
“Thanks. Goodnight.”  
“G’night, Tommy.”

Tommy closed the door behind him as he watched Grian fly into the evening sky.  
There was a tweet and the teen turned to see Michael perched on his bed frame.  
“Hey buddy,”  
He said to the parrot who chattered happily.

He gave the bird head scratches before flopping onto his bed.  
He sighed and shucked his armor off before pulling his blankets up.

“Sorry to leave you alone for a bit Michael,”  
Tommy mumbled, hardly audible through his pillow,  
“I was learning and failing to fly.”  
Michael cooed before ruffling his feathers and closing his eyes.

The teen lifted his head and stared at the scarlet bird before saying softly,  
“Grian said he has some pet parrots. So at least _he_ won’t hurt you.”

Michael made a sound akin to a snore and Tommy smiled.  
“Alright. G’night Michael.”

He closed his eyes, sleep slowly dragging him under.  
He was glad he wasn’t alone today.


	9. Chapter 9- Beside the Fountain

The sun warmed Tommy’s back as he sat on the edge of the fountain.  
Michael was pecking the ground a few blocks away as the teen watched, but after a bit he stopped and perked up.

“That’s a nice bird you have.”  
Tommy looked up at the voice, blinking at the man in the green armor suit.  
“Oh. Yeah,”  
Tommy said idly, staring at the admin. He stood up and asked,  
“So, can I go back home?”

Tommy couldn’t see Xisuma’s face, but he saw the admin’s shift in demeanor.  
“Alright, then I’ll get right into it. Why don’t you sit down?”

Tommy swallowed, but sat down as Xisuma sat beside him.  
“So... Tommy...”  
He began, clearly uncomfortable before shaking his head.  
“Listen. I tried everything I could think of and nothing worked. I at least managed to fix your communicator, but it won’t link to the server. I’m sorry.”  
Xisuma handed Tommy his communicator and the teen stared at the device.

“So... I can’t go home?”  
Xisuma glanced at Tommy before looking back at his communicator.  
It was a bit bigger than Tommy’s, but the teen figured it was because he was admin.  
He had never seen Dream’s communicator.

“I’ll keep trying. I promise. Just let me know if your communicator connects to the server, because otherwise it’s more or less out of my control. I’m really sorry.”

Tommy swallowed and looked at his communicator.  
He booted it up and stared at the screen as the cursor blinked in front of him, waiting for his message.  
There were no messages above it, public or private.

“I gotta go, but it looks like you might be here for a while. Take care, Tommy.”  
The teen looked up as the admin left, flinching as he took off with rockets.

He turned his attention back to his communicator.  
He tentatively typed out:  
Tommyinnit: hello?

And waited for a response, but there was nothing.  
At least it sent.  
Somewhere.

Tommy sighed and pocketed his device.  
Michael was still sitting in the grass watching his owner warily.  
He was stuck.  
Tommy scoffed.  
He was trapped on a server full of people who could kill him with their pinky.  
There was no Tubbo or Dream or Techno or Big Q or Ranboo or anyone that he knew.  
No one on his side.

 _Will I ever see Tubbo again?_  
The thought clung to Tommy’s brain and the teen curled up on himself.  
What if he died out here?  
Became a ghost on this server and Tubbo was gone for eternity?  
What if he forgot Tubbo?  
Or his discs?  
Or Wilbur?  
Or Philza?

Tommy felt like he should be experiencing more sadness than he felt.  
He wanted to scream and cry until he lost his voice and yet he only sat there in the grass curled up as he leaned against the cool of the fountain.

He heard Michael chirp nearby and feathers rubbed his ear.  
He didn’t move.

He wasn’t sure how long he sat there.  
The sun grew hotter.  
Michael left after a bit.

“Tommy?”  
The teen still didn’t move.  
He knew the voice, and he heard Michael twitter nervously.  
_So that’s where he disappeared to._  
“Tommy are you okay? What’s wrong?”  
He didn’t respond.  
He didn’t want to.  
Even if he had spent nearly all day with the guy in front of him he didn’t entirely trust Grian.  
Not yet.

“Tommy? What can I do? How can I help?”  
... _Fuck it_.

“I can’t go home.”  
“What?”  
He heard Grian sit in front of him.  
“Xisuma came by. He said I can’t go home.”

Grian was quiet for a bit before he said softly,  
“I’m sorry Tommy.”  
Tommy lifted his head.  
He felt so tired all of a sudden.  
“Will I ever go home?”  
Grian bit his upper lip.  
“I... I’m not sure.”

Tommy tucked his head back against his knees and Michael perched on his shoulder.  
They sat in silence for a bit before Grian asked cautiously,  
“Would you like me to stay?”

Tommy managed a nod.  
He definitely didn’t want to be alone right now.  
He heard Grian stand up and shift closer, close enough the Tommy could feel the heat from his body but they weren’t touching.  
He heard the builder dig through his inventory and place a couple blocks before music poured around them.  
Mellohi.  
Tommy blinked and lifted his head to look at the jukebox that sat in front of them.

“Sorry I don’t have Cat,”  
Grian said softly, also looking at the jukebox,  
“But I figured this would be okay?”

Tommy hummed and closed his eyes.  
“It’s fine.”  
It was perfect.  
If he closed his eyes he was back on the prime path with Tubbo at his side, glaring at Dream as he played the disc atop a tour.  
Tommy had done a really cool block clutch that day.  
He smiled.

He opened his eyes to take in the jungle as the music played.  
Michael flew toward the jukebox and landed on top, beginning to dance with the tune.

Grian started giggling and Tommy scoffed,  
“What a dumb bird.”  
“I prefer _pesky_ bird,”  
Grian mused, watching Michael as he moved with the disc.  
Tommy smirked,  
“Yeah. Pesky bird.”

They sat together as the disc ran out of music, Michael eventually settling down and preening his feathers.  
“Thank you for the disc. And the company.”  
“Of course. I’ll be here as long as you’ll have me.”

Tommy glanced at Grian, his eyes catching on the elytra that the builder wore.  
“Can you... try and teach me how to fly again?”  
Grian glanced at him in surprise,  
“Are you sure?”  
Tommy nodded,  
“Yeah. Just to- to get my mind off things. Tomorrow?”  
“Sure! Whatever you want.”

Tommy nodded, then stood up. He was a little shaky as his blood flow came back, but he managed to stay standing.  
Grian stood up too, picking up his jukebox and other things before turning toward Tommy.

“I’m going to head back toward the mansion, but if you want me to come over, make a campfire. I can’t speak smoke signals but I’ll at least know when you want me.”

Tommy didn’t know what smoke signals were, but he nodded anyway,  
“Alright, will do.”  
Grian smiled, then pulled out his rockets.  
“Stay safe, Tommy.”

He took off and the teen tensed as the sound of the rocket squealed into the jungle.  
When it went quiet, Tommy opened his eyes, then turned toward Michael.  
“Come on pesky bird, let’s go to bed.”

As Tommy crawled under the sheets, Michael perched on his bed frame and twittered quietly.  
When the teen’s snores rang through the room, his communicator’s screen turned on.

WilburSoot: Tommy?


	10. Chapter 10- Flight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's been so long since I last updated!  
> I hit writer's block pretty hard (I'm writing two other stories and haven't been able to write for them either, but I'm slowly working it out).
> 
> Thank you so much for the patience, and I'll give you the next chapter as soon as I finish it!  
> <3  
> ~Echo

Tommy didn’t pick up his communicator when he got out of bed the next morning.  
What was the point?  
He couldn’t receive messages and there was no point sending messages where no one was.

So he put on all of his armor except his chestpiece (which was in his inventory), and went outside to wait for Grian.  
They hadn’t discussed a time, and if Tommy looked at the sun it was still fairly early in the morning.  
He needed to make a path that lead to the mansion, but for now he did the next best thing and built a campfire.

He watched the smoke drift into the azure sky, hoping that Grian would see it soon.  
Michael squawked nearby and when the teen turned to look, he smiled as the bird hopped and flapped his wings at a green parrot.  
The bird’s feathers were the same color as Tubbo’s shirt.

“Tommy! I saw your smoke!”  
The teen looked up to where Grian was gliding down, the man in the red sweater landing neatly before smiling at him.  
“What’s up?”

Tommy smiled at the builder before shrugging,  
“I was hoping we could get going with the flying?”  
Grian nodded, pulling another pair of elytra out of his inventory and handing them to Tommy.  
“Do you want me to help you?”  
The teen shook his head,  
“No, I can do it.”

He got them on, Grian double checking he was secure before congratulating him on putting the wings on correctly.  
They enderpearled up to a nearby tree, Michael watching them teleport with a chirp.  
When they reached the treetops, Grian moved closer to the edge and turned back toward Tommy.

“Okay, now the last time you tried you actually held your balance fairly well, but a tree got in your way. That’s why we are in a bigger area today, so that you can land near the fountain or on one of the houses. Sound good?”  
Tommy looked over the edge and to the clearing below before nodding.

“Okay, I’ll go first.”  
Grian jumped off the tree, gliding and landing on the roof of one of the houses.  
“Come to me, Tommy!”  
He shouted, the teen staring at the destination before taking a deep breath.

He leapt, keeping his arms outstretched as the wings opened up behind him.  
He maintained balance, gliding toward the house at a slow pace.

“You’re doing it, Tommy!”  
Grian cheered from his spot on the roof,  
“When you want to land, just lean back a little bit and keep your feet below you!”

Tommy didn’t answer, focusing too hard to speak. He leaned back a bit, keeping his feet below him as he landed hard on the roof next to Grian.

He took damage, but with his armor he didn’t even lose half a heart.  
He stared at Grian for a moment before raising his fist high in the air.  
“Yeah!! I did it baby!”  
He whooped, laughing as he jumped around on the roof.  
“Careful! You’re going to fall off!”  
Grian laughed, his hands ready to catch the teen if he slipped.

“I can fly! I’m king of the world!”  
“King of the world!”  
Grian crowed, laughing along with Tommy.  
Their giggled eventually bubbled away, and they sat on the edge of the roof kicking their legs.

“Do you want to try rockets today? Or keep practicing gliding?”  
Tommy hummed at the hermit’s question, kicking his legs a little more violently and listening to the thunk of his shoes against the wood before saying,  
“Maybe.”

“We don’t have to, just offering.”  
The teen pursed his lips before nodding.  
“No, I want to try. At least once.”  
Grian stared at the kid for a moment before smiling.  
“Alright, if you’re sure.”

They both stood up and the builder handed Tommy half a stack of rockets.  
If the hermit noticed him avoiding looking at the striped bundles of gunpowder, he didn’t say anything.

“Alright, they are fairly easy to use,”  
Grian began, holding one of them loosely in his hand,  
“There is this string on the bottom, and if you pull it-“  
The builder gave the string a tug and the rocket took off with a shriek, soaring into the air before falling limp next to the fountain.  
Tommy jumped at the noise, then stared at the rocket in his hands and twisted it around.  
“And there’s no explosion!”  
Grian reassured him.  
“How the fuck does that work?”  
Tommy asked, as he twisted the red and white swirled paper in his hands.

“I’m not too sure?”  
Grian chuckled, looking at the other rockets he had,  
“I think the string is connected to something inside that creates a spark and ignites the gunpowder.”  
Tommy narrowed his eyes at the rocket before shrugging,  
“So how do I use it to fly?”

“Well, you jump and hold the rocket away from you, but pointed in whatever direction you want to start flying. Be careful of the sparks that fly out the bottom, usually they won’t burn you but some of the rockets get a bit aggressive. Just make sure it’s never in front of your face and the worst you’ll get is some singed arm hair.”

Tommy nodded, then asked,  
“Can you do it first?”  
“Of course!”  
Grian chirped, jumping just high enough to get his feet off the roof before pulling the string and taking off into the sky.  
When the rocket lost its boost, he began drifting back down.  
“Your turn!”  
He called as he glided through the air.  
Tommy nodded, then jumped and pulled the string.  
The rocket screamed as it yanked him high into the sky.

The scream sounded like Tubbo.  
Tommy was staring at his best friend’s body as it crumpled inside the yellow box.  
“N-no! Tubbo!”  
He yelped, dropping the crossbow full of rockets.  
When Tubbo’s corpse didin’t disappear, there was a hand on his shoulder.  
He turned to see Jschlatt staring at him with a smile.  
His suit was singed and a bit of his hair held a small flame.  
“Good job Tommy,”  
The tyrant praised, his golden eyes seeming to glow,  
“You took his last life.”

“Tommy!”  
The teen blinked from his trance and realized he was falling.  
Really fast.  
He was pointed face-first at a treetop and too close to stop.  
He screamed and tried to pull up, but landed heavily on the branches and rolled as his momentum began to pull him off the tree.

His wings got caught on a branch and he got yanked around his shoulders as his feet dangled off over the drop.  
He stared at the fall and pulled out his water bucket just in case as he screamed,  
“Grian!”

He heard a rocket activate and something landing on the tree behind him.  
“I’ve got you!”  
The hermit shouted as he ran toward the teen, hefting him up by the armpits and dragging him to safety.  
When Tommy’s feet found their footing atop the leaves he kicked away from the edge until he was safe in the middle.  
The two plopped down on the leaves to catch  
their breath.  
“Are you okay?”  
Grian asked after a bit, Tommy swallowing before pressing his palms into his eyes hard enough he saw stars.  
“I can’t use the rockets.”  
The teen said softly, trying to force the image of his dead best friend out of his mind.

“Alright, no rockets.”  
Grian said gently, shifting closer and laying a hand on Tommy’s back.  
“I can get you a shulker full of enderpearls that you can use instead, or even a trident, but that’ll only really work if it’s raining.”

Tommy didn’t answer immediately, but did eventually nod.  
“Alright,”  
Grian soothed,  
“I’ll get you some. Why don’t we take your elytra off? There’s a big hole in one of the sides.”

The teen moved his hands away from his face to help the builder take the elytra off.  
He winced at the large hole torn in the right side, but _was_ glad that it saved his life.

“Do you want to glide down? Or enderpearl?”  
Grian asked as he tucked the ruined elytra into his inventory.  
“Enderpearl,”  
Tommy mumbled.  
He didn’t trust himself to water bucket right now, let alone use another pair of elytra.

“Alright, here you are,”  
Grian offered calmly, handing the teen two stacks of pearls.  
The hermit leapt off the tree and glided to the ground, and Tommy stared at the pearls in his hand for a long moment before throwing one down beside the fountain.  
Michael twittered excitedly at his return, and Tommy had to force himself to pet the bird’s head feathers.

“Do you want to walk back to my mansion with me?”  
Grian asked when he landed beside them,  
“I can carve out a bit of a path between here and my place so you can travel easily.”

Tommy nodded wordlessly, then began to follow Grian as the builder led the trek into the jungle.  
Michael perched on the teen’s shoulder, twittering happily as they walked.


End file.
